Finally...Nani Iro meets Megan Nielsen

Tadaaaaa! Sorry for having kept you waiting so so long! Luckily, weather turned a little warmer these days, so here we go!

Thank you all so so much for your lovely feedback and input! This was so heart warming and really re-motivated me to work on this dress again.

There have been some wonderful ideas!
Some of them easier like simply adding another button or wearing a camisole underneath! ;)
Unfortunately, these did not work because the neckline was not only low, but really wide all around.

Others were more tech- nically complicated, like adding a scalloped or ruffled neckline.

I really loved the idea of a lace neckline, but was unsure because of the extreme print. Thus I had the feeling that this could be a little over- whelming to me.

In the end I opted for a simple creme colored additional neckline sewn into the dress.

It turned out way better than before and is totally wearable now, but somehow it still is a little unfitted...sigh...I guess it is the fate of the overambitious seamstress to always find something not perfectly done! Anyway, this project is done and I can surely live with the result! :) 

By the way, coming up next: a Chloe dress by Victory Patterns, a BurdaMagazine copycat bubble dress and yet another dress by DrapeDrape. Oh, I hope for a long and warm summer!!!

Wishing everybody a wonderful and sunny weekend!!!

Office Blouse

Hello lovely readers!!!

First of all, thank you so so much for all the support, encouragement and really great suggestions on my last 'cry for help' post!!!

This is exactly, why I love blogging. You simply give me so so much! AND I was able to rescue that Darling Ranges Dress. Kindly, give me a little more time! I am waiting for beautiful sunny weather and provide you then the result! :D 

Meanwhile, I want to show you a blouse I have finished! I am now working in an office and am in need of loooots of blouses.

Anyway, I don't really like the standard blouse collar on me. It makes me look so boring and conservative, so I opted for this interesting pattern with stand-up collar from Burda magazine 2008/1 (model no. 107).

I like the way the front is kind of 'puzzled' (see below photo for details) and the fact that the 'bib' is against the grainline. It adds that little pizzazz allowed. ;)

The fabric has been waiting in my stash for more than 5 years! Wow, I am so glad to finally have found some pattern for this one!

Dear Tilly, you see you aren't the only one suffering from stitcher's indecision! :D

I truly hope to find some help in your reader's comments!!!

Have a lovely sunday dear readers! And thanks again for all your warm support!!! ♥♥♥

...hmm, help?...

You might think that everything I sew turns out well?!...in that case you are wrong...so today a little proof for that.

I finally found some time to put my hands on the beautiful Darling Ranges dress pattern by Megan Nielsen. As usual, I didn't make a muslin...though this time I regret it a little because I used this wonderful green NaniIro fabric and it just didn't turn out as I had imagined.

Sorry, I don't even feel like making photos of me wearing it! Anyway, I think it is pretty obvious that the neckline is far too wide! 

So please please please lovely readers, if you have any good advices or ideas how to rescue this dress, leave me a comment! I already thought about drafting another neckline and sew it into the previous one. What do you think? And should I use the same fabric as before or a contrast one?!....help is very much appreciated!!! Thanx and have a lovely week!!!

DIY Gift Voucher for a self-made garment

Bow blouse on a little copper hanger and self-made little boutique like carry bag

Promised you an inspiration regarding a DIY Gift Voucher for a self-made garment in this year's first post. 

A little late, but here it comes. I have used this idea twice this year already and it seems, that both recipients were quite happy with it!

So the idea is very simple. I sew tiny, little garments with hand (see how tiny they are in relation to the pug).

The voucher on the left was for a female friend. She really liked my big bow wanderlust blouse and thus I decided to make one for her, too. 

 

Good thing with this voucher is, that you already have a little handmade item to really hand over on the recipient's birthday AND that the recipient is able to choose the fabric on her/his own. I mean, wouldn't it be a pity, if you as a seamstress put great efforts into the accomplishment of a self-made garment, just to find out in the end, that the recipient isn't into the color of your chosen fabric? 

Below you see the voucher for the male friend. This was a little more problematic because I didn't know, at all, what kind of garment he would like. So I made him a selection of 3 garments (cardigan, anorak, shirt) and wrote below 'voucher for a garment of your choice'.

I think it is all about the little details, which make these vouchers really cute and special. For example, the little copper wire clothes hanger (really easy to bend), the little labels or the little beads pretending to be buttons.

So, if you do have some time to spare, this might be a good idea for a dear friend of yours, too.

Hope you liked it and wish you all a beautiful and lovely sunday!

Turquois - inside and outside

These days I came to realize, that my fabric color preference might reflect the mood I am in. At the moment, I am totally into turquois. So I did some research about the meaning of this color and this even strengthened my thinking.

Turquois stands for:

• clarity of thought
• better contact and communication
• harmony and calming down
• self-confidence

Anyway, today I would like to present two new garments I made during my winter sleep. ;)

First, a short turquois colored linen jacket with scalloped decorative screens. 

By the way did you see Tilly's Betty Draper Suit Jacket back in 2010? Once I finished my project, it totally reminded me of her post back then. You should really check out her jacket, which I fell in love with at first sight!

Anyway, back to the version I went for. You can find it in burda magazine 06/2008 (model 102#). It is a short length, slightly tapered jacket with 3/4 long sleeves.

Three details I love about this jacket: 

• three tucks on each sleeve
• it has no collar...somehow I don't really like collars on me, lately...
• the cute scalloped decorative screens...which somehow reminded me on the decorative screens I have attached on the Ruche Boxy Jacket back in January 2011

Second, I also made a matching blouse using light weight cotton. The floral pattern of the fabric somehow reminds me on Art Nouveau style by Alphonse Mucha (though not THAT great, of course. :D )

However, I used a blouse I already had in my wardrobe to make this pattern. I really like its simplicity. You see, the whole blouse is made of 2 pattern pieces only, meaning the sleeves are integrated in the front and back pattern pieces.

Special detail on this blouse is a triple fold on the left side of the front.

It took me some time to figure out how to integrate this additional fabric into the pattern and in the end the solution turned out to be utterly easy!

So if you have a simple pattern like this and would like to add a triple fold to give it a little pizzaz, simply cut the front pattern piece straight from the bottom to the top at the line you intend to include the triple fold. Then, add a rectangle between both pieces with a width you intend to make the folds. That's it! Ahhh, I felt so stupid spending so much time thinking about it. ;)

By the way, I wonder about your favorite color this spring?! Please let me know!

Have a lovely day!

Winter Sleep - It's time to get up!

Lovely readers and friends,

Waaah, it has been over 2 months since my very last post. During that time and especially in the last two weeks, I received mails from some of you, worrying about whether I am still there.

I am so sorry for having let some of you worry, but honestly speaking, it was also heart-warming to realize that a few people from all over the world spend a moment to give thought to me. Thank you dear readers. That was a great and welcome support.

So how can I apologize this long winter sleep like break?!

Well, a lot has happened in this no longer brand new year 2012. First, life brought me to my knees and there were some obstacles to meet and some lessons to learn. Anyway, everything turned out to be ok and even better than I had hoped. So I got back on track the last 3 weeks and am highly motivated to meet all new and unknown challenges, which are about to come up in my life.

Finally, I can tell you about the beautiful changes in my life! There have been several 'first times' since my last post! First of all, I became a proud aunt of a lovely little baby boy!

Isn't he sweet?! I am so longing to see him. Unfortunately, he lives in Taiwan, so that I will have to wait a little until I can hug and cuddle him. At least, I get a new photo of him everyday from my lovely sister-in-law. :D

Second, I went on a short trip to Belgium for the very first time. It is such a shame, that I haven't been there before as it really isn't that far away from the place were I live.

We went to Antwerp, admired the beautiful architecture, enjoyed the great shopping opportunities and even got some cultural education at the Rubenshuis.

On our last day we went to the Belgian sea. You need to know, that I LOVE the sea. Ok, I don't know anyone who doesn't. ;)...anyway, I need to go to the sea, at least, once a year. It it just a wonderful place to arrange one's ideas.

Last but not least, I am now a proud owner of my very first car! Yay!!! :D
You see, lots has happened and kept me busy! However, I did manage to sew from time to time and hopefully be able to share my little projects in the upcoming days.

Left you see one of my first projects this year. Awaiting spring I made this loose fitting blouse with a floral fabric leftover. 

Do you remember for which project I used this fabric before?
Here is the answer. ;)

Thank you so much for your loyalty! More is to come up soon! Have a lovely day everybody!

New Year's Eve Tunic

Finally some new cloth! 

But first of all HAPPY NEW YEAR everybody. Hopefully all of you have had a good start and hopefully all of your dreams and wishes will come true this year. 

I got busy the evening before new year's eve and started this flowery mustard colored tunic.

You know, that I try to fulfill my resolution of at least one garment/ project per week! So this one was a good start, I guess.

Luckily, I was able to finish it just on the 31st. So I made it my new year's eve tunic and paired it with a simple deep blue colored cardigan and some deep blue tights.

 

The pattern is from a Japanese magazine called Pochee (Autumn 2011). You can see the original one on the right side with a purple colored cloth.

I have to admit, that I like the sack-style...it gives you enough room to eat as much as you want, even if you are attending a party...you can always blame your belly on the tunic! :D







Have you sewn yourself a new garment for new year's eve?
Anyway, hope you enjoyed yourself! I had lots of yummy food on mine! ;)

See you soon with a DIY gift voucher inspiration!

A belated christmas present & some 2012 wishes

Belated Christmas Present

Dear lovely readers,

I hope you and your families had a wonderful christmas.

You might have wondered why there were only so few posts in the last couple of weeks?

I have to admit, that I simply lacked any creative sewing ideas or visions. I have read on other fellow sewing blogs, that they have had times like these, too and I can remember that I simply couldn't imagine that something like that might happen to me.

Now I can totally understand, though there isn't even one recognizable reason for this kind of emptiness.

Anyway, I am writing this post today because I think I am under way to get over it! :D

As I went to my favorite local fabric shop, I experienced a wonderful belated christmas! You have to know, that those women working there do know me already because I stop by at least once a week.
They have always been very nice and helpful to me.

But today was special. They were busy with an end of the year clearance and found lots of Burda magazines from 2006, 2008 and 2009! Guess who was the lucky girl allowed to carry home two big bags (26 magazines) with about 13kg!...hahaha, that was me! :D 

Sometimes one is really lucky. Sometimes time and chance simply go together perfectly. With this large boost of inspirational patterns my sewing drought HAS to come to an end! I feel really good about this and it makes me looking forward to the new year.

Have you already made up your New Year's resolutions? Usually, I am not that kind of person, but this year I have some little resolutions I want to write down here in order to push myself heading for them! 

• Have at least one sewing project per week and publish at least one post per week.
• To work out on a regular basis. I would love to loose the weight I gained this year.
• To use time and effort more efficiently.
• To appreciate time with family and friends more consciously.

 So what about you? Do you have any resolutions you would share with me?

3. Weihnachtswichteln (secret Santa) by anmutig and sodapop - Beautiful gifts by Klee

Some weeks ago I applied for taking part in the 3rd 'Weihnachtswichteln' (secret Santa) carried out by two wonderful German bloggers Caro (sodapop-design) and Nadine (anmutig) and lucky me was chosen as one of 24 bloggers to participate.

The deal was, that everyone should make something handmade and send it to one of the other chosen bloggers until the 10th of December. Nadine and Caro drew the adresses by lot and send them to the participants secretly.


So I didn't know from whom I would receive a little present, but was extremely happy, when a package from Franziska Klee arrived!!!

I have been a secret admirer of hers for a while already. She makes and sells really, really beautiful accessoires like leather bags and woolen winter accessoires and she also shares some nice tutorials (in German). She is a wonderful source for inspiration!
Anyway, I just wanted to share the gifts she sent me. A beautiful little mustard (I LOVE THIS COLOR) colored purse, a super cute owl bucket (perfect for fabric scraps!) and a lovely wooden 'Klee' brooch. These little prezzies simply made my day! Both the bucket and the purse are made of real leather.

Thank you Franzi so so much for these beautifully made items. And thanks to Caro and Nadine for having had me in this lovely secret Santa! Now I am in a christmas mood!♥

Everyone should have a Minoru Jacket!

So glad to finally publish this project! I have been longing for the Minoru Jacket pattern by Sewaholic for weeks, especially, after I saw what beautiful creations Anna of Paunnet and Novita of VeryPurplePerson as pattern testers came up with!

I chose a camel beige colored linen-cotton blend for my version and am very, very happy with that.

Actually, this was the first time I tried a pattern from Sewaholic and I have to say that I am very pleased with the whole pattern and instructions. Though this jacket scared me at first (zipper on the front, zipper on the collar, hidden hood, lining, lots of topstitching, etc.) the steps were so perfectly well explained, that this jacket almost evolved on its own.

As a little eye-catcher I decided to use a floral cotton as lining fabric, but turned to normal plain lining fabric for the sleeves, in order to make them more slippery when putting the jacket on.

So if you were thinking about whether to try this pattern, too, I can only recommend it. It is definitely a lot of work, but it totally pays off. 

Have a lovely day and take care everybody!

It's done! 'Autumn Love' pattern and instructions

I finally made it. Sorry, for having you wait for so long, but here you are lovely readers. I can proudly present you the pattern and instructions for 'Autumn Love' dress. ♥

I have done my best to be as precise as possible with the instructions. Please keep in mind, that I am by no means a professional pattern maker. In addition I would love you to contact me, if you find any discrepancies and in case you have problems understanding either instructions or pattern.

If you want to play safe, I would recommend you to make a muslin first. This goes without saying in case you want to alter the size. It would be very disappointing to waste fabric you really love.

So get your sewing notions ready. Here are the links for instructions and pattern

Wishing everybody an amazing sunday and if possible please share with me your finished 'Autumn Love', I am dying to see what you will come up with!

P.S.: Thanks to lovely Meike and her dad for scanning the pattern! :)

Walking the pug...

Just a little post to cheer up your week!

Last friday a friend of mine working in Japan was here for a short vacation and brought me one of the cutest books I have ever seen. 

No doubt, I had to try one of those cute little felt animals (none of them larger than 20cm) on sunday evening. It took me about 6 hours handsewing, but today I could already walk my little pug! ;)

Seems like he loves to play in the leaves... :P

...and he is a little scared by flowers...

...no wonder, because he is still so small (7cm)...

...having a little trouble with the sidewalk...

...but never giving up, no matter how long the way is!

Some more corduroy

First of all...Thank you all for the huge response and lovely feedback on my last post's corduroy dress.

Now I know that a pattern & instructions would definitely be appreciated and I can proudly tell you, that I am about to finish those. :) 

Just give me one more week. I need to correct some mistakes, add some graphics and I need to find a place to get my pattern scanned.

Oh, I cannot wait to share it with you and see what you are going to come up with! :D

By the way, in case you post some questions in the comments section, I came up with a new routine. I will try to answer all of those when I am setting up a new post. So if you ask me anything, just wait for a new post to come up and go back to the comments section of the post you asked your question in. Hope this works and I can come back to all of you! :)

So I made myself some shorts last week! Rust-colored corduroy ones. Sorry, for the photos (and sorry for me wearing slippers! I totally forgot to change shoes!). I had no time for better ones during daytime and thus had to make them at home. 

I like the loose and casual fit and the used flair of corduroy on these. The pattern is actually one that I simply copied from corduroy shorts I already had. I liked those so much, that I wanted to have more than one pair.

Did you ever copy a garment you bought? What is your experience with that? Do you have special tricks? Or would you like to know how I do it?

See you soon with a free pattern! Hope you will have a wonderful week ahead.

My autumn love: corduroy

It is autumn dear followers! But luckily, today we are delighted with 19 degrees celsius in Germany! Yaaay! So these days I will try to wear as many of the dresses I have made, before it will turn cold again.

Anyway, here comes one of my latest projects! I fell in love with corduroy this autumn. It is soft, warm and has a shiny deep color! Perfect for a simple everyday casual dress I thought! And this is what I came up with.

It is an easy fit jumper dress with two pockets on the front and a hidden zipper on the back.

You can't see well on the photos, but this dress involved quite some hand stitching. For example, I hand-stitched the pockets in order to avoid top-stitching. I don't like the hair of the corduroy to be pressed by any seams, so the blind stitch was the only solution that came up my mind.

I also added a facing on the top part of this dress (actually, also by hand) to add a little stiffness around the bust.

What do you think of this dress? I have had this model in mind for quite some time already, but couldn't find a pattern for it. That is why I ended up making a muslin (more or less freestyle) and fit it to my body. I am just asking because, if there was a great demand, I would think about preparing a pattern for free downloading (only one size, sorry, I am still not able to grade patterns :( ). 

Just let me know! :)

So let's enjoy this day and HAPPY HALLOWEEN by the way! ;)

DIY Nani Iro Muffler & some hints for the DIY braided scarf

Hey everybody! As the post title already says, this is a tutorial post! I have got a new muffler DIY to share and because of the great demand, some hints for making your own braided scarf.

But let's start with my new muffler. I already told you that I had some leftovers from my last project's NaniIro fabric. This is what I came up with to get use of it.

Look at this super cute buttons! My father made them for me simply by randomly cutting some wooden board and drilling two holes into them.

It's an easypeasy muffler. All you need is a piece of fabric sized 37cm x 72cm (seam allowances included), 3 straps of lace (each about 8cm long) and 3 matching buttons (max. 3cm diameter).

First of all fold your fabric in half lengthwise (right side of the fabric inside).

After that fold your lace straps in half and place them inside (see grey straps on the right side of the above picture). Pin them with needles, so that they won't slide when you are about to sew the three open sides of your fabric. While sewing, remember to leave a little space (about 10cm) open, so that you can turn your muffler inside out.

After having sewn all three sides, turn the muffler inside out, so that the right side of the fabric and the lace flaps are on the outside. Blind stitch the seam opening. Last but not least attach your bottoms about 18cm from the end of the muffler (the side without lace flaps) and you are done! Easy, isn't it?

And I guess many of you remember this braided scarf, which I have made at the beginning of this year?! I got lots of mails and requests about which amount of fabric is needed for this one.

Luckily the viscose I used was very wide. So I cut every piece of fabric with a length of 170cm. But don't you worry, if your fabric is less wide. Just be sure, that you can still get the scarf arround your neck for two times. 

So here come some measurements of my version:

1 big piece of viscose (170cm x 42cm)

+ for two braids:

3 small pieces of viscose (170cm x 3cm)

3 middle sized pieces of viscose (170cm x 6cm) 

I hope this helps! If there are any further questions, please just let me know! 

Have a wonderful day everybody!